Music And The Spoken Word

 

 

This is Part Two of comments on the 2015 Oscar Nominations and we go into music (Original Score and Original Song) and what I call, The Spoken Word, in other words, the script, including Original Screenplay and Adapted Screenplay. The finale is Foreign Language Film and Documentary. Film fans will be assured that films in the Oscar Nomination categories either are now, or will be again, in theaters for at least the next 6-8 weeks or longer.  This year has been a varied one for film reviewing with the emphasis on good roles for men.

 

*A star by the film is my choice for an Oscar

 

 

*The Grand Budapest Hotel and combining mayhem with life’s foibles (Alexandre Desplat)
The Imitation Game and the sound of the computer in the background with life in the foreground
(Alexandre Desplat)
Interstellar and blast-off and finding new worlds (Hans Zimmer)
Mr. Turner and the lush world of oil painting (Gary Yershon)

The Theory of Everything and love when all seems impossible (Johann Johannsson)

 

Didn't Make It
How To Train Your Dragon 2 and an animated film with a classical sound (John Powell)
The Homesman and life on the American prairie (Mario Beltrami)
Unbroken and the heroic story of survival (Alexandre Desplat)
Rio 2 and an animated musical collage in the jungle (John Powell)
Maleficent in which evil is hiding a secret (James Newton Howard)
Draft Day and sports on the line (John Debney)

 

*Note:  composer Alexandre Desplat had a banner year for film score composing

 

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“Everything Is Awesome” (The Lego Movie) and music with animated characters from toy land
“Glory” (Selma) and the Civil Rights March
“Grateful” (Beyond The Lights) and the world of entertainment
*“I'm Not Gonna Miss You (“Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me) sung by a man with Alzheimer’s Disease
“Lost Stars” (Begin Again) and hope is always on the horizon

 

Didn't Make It
“Yellow Flicker” (Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part I) and the mark of rebellion
“Big Eyes” (Big Eyes) and the shock of discovery in a marriage
“For The Dancing And The Dreaming“ (How To Train Your Dragon 2) and love lost and found

 

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Birdman and rebuilding one’s life and career on the edge
Boyhood and twelve years of following the same people grow and change into adults
Foxcatcher and a study of madness in the wrestling field
*The Grand Budapest Hotel and a touch of the Marx Brothers comedy with a heart
Nightcrawler and the seedy side of life with a camera

 

Didn't Make It
Interstellar and a twist on reaching for the stars
A Most Violent Year and 1981 in New York was the pits
St. Vincent and putting together a dysfunctional family unit

 

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*American Sniper and telling the story of a hero and tragedies of war
The Imitation Game and the first computer and who figured out its complexities
Inherent Vice and life on the West Coast before pot was legal
The Theory of Everything and how to live your life when you can't move
Whiplash and the study of perfection with blood on the cymbals

 

Didn't Make It
Gone Girl and the anatomy of a marriage
The Boxtrolls and living in a box can be trendy
The Homesman with the American prairie being not so friendly

 

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*Ida (Poland) and finding devastating secrets of your past
Leviathan (Russia) and fighting corruption in a small town is the same as on a global scale
Tangerines (Estonia) and helping during war time
Timbuktu (Mauritania) and the occupation of a country
Wild Tales (Argentina) and short film stories with a twist

 

Didn't Make It
Force Majeure Turist (Sweden) and defining a marriage under avalanche pressure
Two Days, One Night (Belgium) and fighting to keep one’s job

 

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*Citizenfour and behind the scenes with Snowdon
Finding Vivian Maier and a nanny who was secretly a top photographer
Last Days in Vietnam and moving ahead of the Red Army
The Salt of the Earth and a photographic study of the world and people
Virunga and preserving the last of the mountain gorillas

 

Didn't Make It
Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me and living with Alzheimer’s Disease as a top performer
SlingShot and studying water resources and conservation
Life Itself and a film bio of the late film critic, Roger Ebert
 
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Thus ends the Academy Award commentary for 2015 and the following year looks just as promising.  Enjoy. The Academy Award Presentations will be Sunday, February 22, 2015.